Diplomacy and International Politics

North Korea’s nuclear weapons challenge is as serious a crisis an American president has faced since the end of the Cold War. That is why President Trump should tread carefully and wisely before hurtling us toward conflict in Asia.

Putin and his government seek respect, stability from next U.S. administration, panel says.

As the candidates are solidified by their respective parties, leaked emails call to question the involvement of outside parties in opening access to the public on private correspondence. Senior Fellow for The Future of Diplomacy Project, David Ignatius, digs into the validity of such claims and the breakdown of security.

In the global revulsion at the recent terror attacks in four Muslim countries, the United States and its allies have a new opportunity to build a unified command against the Islamic State and other extremists. FDP Senior Fellow David Ignatius examines the diplomatic relationships needed to create an effective counterterrorism strategy.

On June 23, the United Kingdom will decide whether it should remain part of the European Union. The early polls suggest that not only the Conservative government, but the whole country, is split. Future of Diplomacy Project senior fellow and former MP, Douglas Alexander, explains why a vote for Brexit would leave the whole European project at risk of unraveling at precisely the time new economic and security threats confront the West.

Little noticed amid the daily news bulletins about the Islamic State and Syria, the Pentagon has begun a push for exotic new weapons that can deter Russia and China.

“Syrian peace talks” is one of those phrases where the soothing words don’t fit the nightmare reality. But the indefatigable Secretary of State John F. Kerry is making another try this weekend in Vienna, and there’s more to this effort than just his good intentions.

In this “Conversation in Diplomacy" with former NATO Secretary-General and 2015 spring Fisher Family Fellow, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the Future of Diplomacy Project Director R. Nicholas Burns discusses NATO's collective security issues, Russian aggression in Ukraine, and the destined leadership of the U.S. in the liberal democratic global community.

In this Boston Globe op-ed, Professor Burns writes about the tragedy of Boris Nemtsov's murder in Red Square and the need for the West to continue to shine a bright spotlight on the lack of freedom in Russia. He argues that the European and U.S. response to Russia's actions in Ukraine has been insufficient. In particular, Germany, the strongest European state, appears incapable of combining diplomacy and tougher measures effectively in its dealings with Russia. Professor Burns writes that it is timer for President Obama to lead a stronger Western response to Putin through greater economic sanctions against Russia, much more substantial financial aid to the Ukrainian government, the transfer of defensive arms to Kiev and a new move to station a strong contingent of NATO ground and air forces permanently on the territory of NATO allies Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Those forces will help to make credible to Putin NATO's Article V commitment to the security of the Baltic States.